But our wind also has dropped. The boatmen are lowering the sails and we are gliding to the shores of Capernaum. They are now covered with rich meadows, with here and there ploughed fields and crops of fast-growing grain. From the boat we can see no signs that a city once stood on the spot. The only evidence of life is a low, gray, one-story monastery belonging to the Franciscans, who are excavating the ruins and digging temples and synagogues out of the soil. They own several hundred acres running along the beach and extending for perhaps a mile up the hills. Some of their lands are under cultivation, and there are orchards of lemons, oranges, and almonds to the east of their buildings. Landing at the wharf we enter a door in the walls which surround the excavations. I introduce myself to Father Wenderlin, an austere-looking priest who speaks German. He takes me around and shows me the results of the work. He says they are digging up what is believed to be the actual synagogue where Jesus Christ taught when He came here from Nazareth. As you must remember, Capernaum was His home. It was from here that He found most of His disciples and here He cured Simon’s wife’s mother who lay sick of a fever. Here, disgusted with the wickedness of the city, He said: And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto Heaven shall be brought down to hell; for if the mighty works which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained unto this day. The prophecy then uttered has long since come to pass. The city of Capernaum is not. [Illustration: The prayer niches of the Grand Mosque of Damascus are marvels in mosaics. Marble and wood are inlaid with gold, silver, precious stones, and glass. They were presented to the mosque by pious and wealthy Mohammedans as thankofferings for Divine favour] [Illustration: In this Mohammedan cemetery in Damascus lies Fatima, daughter of the Prophet, and also two of the Prophet’s wives. On Thursdays the women of the city come to mourn at the graves] The ruins of the synagogue show the splendour of the ancient city. I walked around its boundaries. It was fifty-four feet long and seventy-two feet wide. Its front, which faced the sea, had a great many marble columns, and it was built in two stories, the upper of which was for the women. The pillars are three feet thick, smoothly finished and exquisitely carved. The marble work is that common in Rome shortly before the time of Christ, and much of it is uninjured.